Jackie Thornton

When Mama's on the Telephone Jackie Thornton

When Mama's On The Telephone offers a lesson to both mamas and children. Busy mamas need the telephone to manage the activities of a hurried family. She uses it to make appointments and plan activities. It is also how she connects with her friends when she needs quiet time for herself. Children often feel ignored and excluded when their mother talks on the telephone. They are asked to be quiet and the focus shifts away from them to another. In an attempt to return to the center of his mother's attention the child often misbehaves. The book uses a dramatic example of a fire to show how the phone saved the family's home. After the lesson is learned, the little boy accepts the phone and begins to understand that it is an important part of his family's life. The mother becomes reassuring and inclusive toward the little boy while she is on the telephone. Most mother's and their children have had "telephone trauma" and we hope this book turns what can sometimes be a bad experience into a more positive one. The book is written in short rhyming verses that are easy to remember. The illustrations present typical messes that all children create while their mama is on the telephone.